Reducing Risk through Segmentation, Permutations, Time and Space Exposure, Inverse States, and Separation

Abstract

The paper features a number of new generic principles for reducing technical risk with a very wide application area. Permutations of interchangeable components/operations in a system can reduce significantly the risk of system failure at no extra cost. Reducing the time of exposure and the space of exposure can also reduce risk significantly. Technical risk can be reduced effectively by introducing inverse states countering negative effects during service. The application of this principle in logistic supply networks leads to a significant reduction of the risk of congestion and delays. The associated reduction of transportation costs and environmental pollution has the potential to save billions of dollars to the world economy. Separation is a risk-reduction principle which is very efficient in the cases of separating functions to be carried out by different components and for blocking out a common cause. Segmentation is a generic principle for risk reduction which is particularly efficient in reducing the load distribution, vulnerability to a single failure, the hazard potential and damage escalation.